Political directors of the member countries of the Steering Board of the Peace Implementation Council (PIC) met in Sarajevo on June 17-18 to discuss the current situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Steering Board of PIC discussed the overall situation in the state on Monday, especially the fact that government still has not been formed, whereas on Tuesday they will meet with Collegium of the Parliamentary Assembly of BiH.
Today, High Representative Valentin Inzko will address the public with details of meeting at 14:00 0’clock.
Following the successful negotiation of the Dayton Peace Agreement in November 1995, a Peace Implementation Conference was held in London on December 8-9, 1995, to mobilise international support for the Agreement. The meeting resulted in the establishment of the Peace Implementation Council (PIC).
The PIC comprises 55 countries and agencies that support the peace process in many different ways – by assisting financially, providing troops for EUFOR, or directly running operations in Bosnia and Herzegovina. There is also a fluctuating number of observers.
Since the London Conference, the PIC has come together at the ministerial level another five times to review progress and define the goals of peace implementation for the coming period: in June 1996 in Florence; in December 1996 for a second time in London; in December 1997 in Bonn; in December 1998 in Madrid, and in May 2000 in Brussels.
PIC Observers to date: Australia, Central Bank of Bosnia and Herzegovina, European Investment Bank (EIB), Estonia, Holy See, Human Rights Ombudsperson in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iceland, International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), International Mediator for Bosnia and Herzegovina, International Organisation for Migration (IOM), Latvia, Lithuania, New Zealand, Liechtenstein, South Africa and the Special Co-ordinator of the Stability Pact for South Eastern Europe.
The Steering Board members are Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, United Kingdom, United States, the Presidency of the European Union, the European Commission, and the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC), which is represented by Turkey.
The Steering Board provides the High Representative with political guidance. In Sarajevo, the High Representative chairs biweekly meetings of the Ambassadors to BiH of the Steering Board members. In addition, the Steering Board meets at the level of political directors twice a year.
